In the Abyss
by nikiallen0119
Summary: Post Infinity War: Loki survives Thanos and reflects on faking his own death... (Co-authored with Dashimusic and egillawrites)


**A/N: This is a short story written by my two friends, Emily and Elizabeth, along with myself. I have used it to give writing examples on YouTube, and also to give a new light to Loki. You may also find this story in a short story Loki collection book on Wattpad if you go to the user Dashimusic. We hope you enjoy.**

Darkness. That was all Loki saw as he floated through the great expanse that was the universe. He felt as though he was pressed between two strong walls which continued to close in on him. He couldn't move his body and his head seemed about to implode. Immense weight squeezed his body until it was unbearable. When the torment increased to a maximum, Loki tried to let out a scream of agony, but silence was all that came from his mouth. A constant and annoying ringing sound continued to play in his ears. However, this torment that he was experiencing could not be compared to the surprising sensation of cold that he felt. Due to his Frost Giant origins, Loki normally was not bothered by the cold, but the extreme temperatures of space caused his body to feel ice shards pricking his face and invasive cold covering every inch of his body.

His body was lifeless. Floating through the dark abyss of space.

 _Thor stood beside Loki on the ship headed for Earth, staring out the large window into the black void of space. The murmurs of the Asgardian passengers weren't enough to keep their minds from spiraling into confusion and anxiety at the sight of a craft much larger than theirs approaching. Thor stood beside his younger brother, not even taking the moment to notice the pure fear that paled Loki's face._

 _"We need to go. Now." Loki commanded in a low tone, already turning away. Thor protested in confusion, but the sound of an explosion and the feeling of an immense shockwave wracked the ship. The brothers_ _ran_ , _shouting_ _above the terrified screams of the passengers. Turmoil and chaos was all that met Loki's ears. He knew who was attacking. He was afraid._

His head ached. His tear ducts throbbed from the overwhelming urge to cry. Not being able to move his injured body, he was only still and remembered….

 _Destruction. Death. It was everywhere, covering the ground of the ship. They were struck down. Thanos and his children inflicted the utter terror that chilled Loki to the bone. Ebony Maw, a dark sorcerer and child of Thanos opened his arms wide, relishing on the silent, breathless beings, "Hear me… and rejoice…"_

 _A shudder went down Loki's spine at the sound of the child of Thanos. Loki stood near the front of the ship, looking around at all the bodies lying on the ground. If only he had been one of them. As Ebony Maw walked past him, Loki shifted his gaze to Thanos. Dread overtook his mind, but he remained composed on the outside._

 _Thanos. The same monster who had tortured him into submission so many years ago. The same being that forced him into slavery despite Loki's constant efforts to break free from his control. Fear gripped every part of Loki's mind as looked upon the creature who used to be his oppressor. The recollection of all that Loki had done while serving Thanos flooded his memory. The lives he had taken, the damage he had done. What began as fear changed to shame and regret. He wanted to end it all there, in order to both save the universe from his constantly shifting mindset and to put an end to the sufferings that he himself had to endure each and every second that he stood breathing. At that moment he had decided, he wanted to die. He wanted it to finally be over._

 _Thanos approached, dragging a weakened Thor by the neck who spewed blood from his mouth. The titan commanded, a sadistic look deep in his eyes, "The Tesseract... or your brother's head."_

 _Loki controlled the tremors that threatened to shake his entire body as Thanos stepped toward him. He had to answer and find a way of escape, if possible. He knew it would be immensely painful._

The memory cut him to his core. Nothing, nothing could affect him this way except for Thanos. His fingertips had a lingering cold sensation like he never felt before. His skin was turning blue.

 _Like the weight of the world pulling him into a never-ending void, Loki endured the pain of his emotions as he walked towards Thanos, saying words that came out of his mouth without thinking too much about them. All he could think was that this was where his story ended, and he welcomed it. Almost every moment leading up to it since his infamous fall from the rainbow bridge was torture. He never thought he would have made it this far. He greeted death with a small grin to Thor, "I assure you brother, the sun will shine on us again."_

A grimace made an attempt to spread across his face. He had failed. His mother was right, of course she was. "Cast too many illusions and you will forget what's real." He was so accustomed to creating illusions as a safeguard… from his cowardice… that he had ruined his own suicide attempt.

 _Thanos squeezed the illusion's neck with pleasure. All this time he believed that Loki's illusions couldn't be touched unless Loki was there himself, but he forgot that the mischievous prince had deep knowledge of how to borrow power from the tesseract. His illusion was solid, filled with the energy of the space stone. Loki looked down from where he stood, watching himself die. He didn't have the courage to dissipate the illusion although his mind ached for it. The illusion had become his reality until that moment._

Now as his cold, frozen body lay floating in the vacuum of space, tears escaped the corners of his eyes, freezing to his skin. He felt so immensely weak, despite having drawn power from the tesseract earlier. Death had been so close, he tasted it, like the blood in between his teeth. A good part of him had wanted to die.

His body was still being mercilessly crushed by the constant pressure, yet life continued to cling to Loki, despite his desperate wish to rid himself of the privilege to live. His reality had been ruined by his own illusions, just like Frigga had warned him during his stay in Asgard's dungeons.


End file.
